Jawlani has moved to form a transitional government, get the buses running and turn the power back on.

Tens of thousands of people held in Syria's notorious prisons have been freed in the 10 days since the insurgents began their lightning advance across the country that ended with the toppling of President Bashar Assad.

Rapturous celebrations in the streets of the capital were tempered by trepidation over whether the city’s new rebel caretakers could deliver a better future.